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I grimaced as the taste of lukewarm beer filled my throat. I forced myself to get it down, but I sure didn’t want another one. I tossed the red cup into the nearest trash can before Hannah started bopping around, dancing to the thumping music and reaching for yet another drink.
One of many I presumed she’d already had.
I looked up and down the hallway. Weren’t there resident assistants for this kind of thing? I walked down the hallway, eyeing the doors. Waiting for that familiar red sticker to come into view.
“Gotcha,” I whispered.
I threw open the RA’s door. But instead of being greeted by the boy who had the sign on his door, I was greeted with the back of his ass.
As he plowed his way between the legs of a girl who was much louder than she needed to be.
“Oh, fuck!”
“That’s it. Take it. You know you want to.”
My eyes bulged as I quickly closed the door, and I suddenly wanted another beer.
You know, to pour into my eyeballs in order to wash that scene from the back of my eyelids.
I peeked over my shoulder and saw Hannah getting comfortable with some guy I didn't recognize. Then again, I didn't recognize anyone. I felt more uncomfortable than I ever had in my entire life. I decided to keep walking down the hallway. I jutted into the small alcove that connected one hallway with another. Opposite sides of the dorm room building that almost felt like different worlds.
Because this hallway didn’t have music. Or strobe lights. Or drunk RA’s screwing around with their flavor of the night.
At the end of the hallway was a couple making out. The girl straddled his lap, moaning so loud I heard her on the opposite end. I sighed as I made my way for the steps. I walked down a level, leaving one set of music behind for another. And when I pushed myself through the door of the level below my room, I was met with colored lights that twinkled. Drinks that smelled like pineapple and coconut.
I decided to stick around there for a while.
Someone shoved a drink into my hand, but I didn’t drink it. I kept it around because it smelled nice and had a quaint little umbrella in it. But that was it. The drink was a nice decoy, too. No one else pushed any other alcohol on me since I carried a full drink around. Which meant I could use it as a disguise. I was more intrigued with exploring the different levels of the party than with actually partying myself.
So I kept making my way down.
Each level had a different theme. A different set of lights, and drinks, and people. Some floors did nothing but dance. Some floors did nothing but make out. One of the floors sounded more like a brothel than an actual party. Which meant I didn’t have any issues quickly bypassing that one.
Then, I came to the third floor. Which was really the bottom level of the dorm rooms, since the ground level held nothing but the kitchen and a large pool room and the second floor held a massive soundproof study hall.
There wasn’t much of a party going on with this floor, either.
I pushed through the door and the smell of cigarettes filled the air. I wrinkled up my nose as music played haphazardly from some sort of a speaker system in the corner. The music was swiftly overpowered by the thumping of the bass notes above my head. I didn’t see anyone doling out alcohol, making out or having sex in any of the rooms or the corners of the hallway. I mean, the place looked almost abandoned.
Until I heard voices.
“Dude, come on. At least blow it out the damn window.”
“He’s right, Max. Benji here could get into trouble.”
“Rupert, shut up.”
“Watch your tone.”
I froze at that voice. I recognized that voice. I furrowed my brow as I peeked around the corner, taking in the three men standing by the open dorm room window. Cigarette smoke hovered around them, the air thickening with its scent. And the more I watched, the more I recognized. There was that tall, lanky boy again. The one that had barged into my dorm room and refused to leave. There was one with stark red hair sticking out from underneath a beanie. But the tall one—I couldn't take my eyes off the tall one.
Because it was the man who’d helped me with my things up to my room the other day.
His brow was furrowed deeply as he sucked on his cigarette. I watched the thing burn down to almost nothing as he expanded his broad chest. He flicked the entire thing into a wastebasket at his feet before blowing it out the screen window through a small hole in his lips. I couldn't take my eyes off him. The movement was mesmerizing.
The worry in his voice made my spine sizzle, though.
I couldn't tell what they were murmuring about, but I knew it wasn’t good. He talked low, with a rumbling voice that weakened my knees. The other two paid close attention to him. And even the lanky guy grew worried. I hated that I didn’t know any of their names. I needed to get into a better habit of actually asking for names.
